The New Transformer
by Dragongyrl24
Summary: For years Jazira has longed to join NEST and use her gift to help the Autobots. But when Optimus is brutally attacked by Decepticons on his way to meet her, the time has come to reveal that gift. Rate T for language and violence, just to be safe.
1. The Time Has Come

_**Author's Note: **__This story is set a year after ROTF. This first chapter might be a little boring but it's important to the rest of the story. I don't own Transformers but I do own Jazira's character. This is my first fan fic EVER guys so be nice to me! =D_

_Enjoy!_

The night was clear and the stars and moon shone on the mountainside. It was a beautiful summer night and all was quiet. Only the crickets chirping and the frogs peeping in a nearby pond could be heard. No creature was aware of her presence. Perched atop a rock, a girl sat staring at the moon deep in thought. She was a beautiful sight to behold. She had a regal face with high cheekbones, full lips, and sharp green eyes: her greatest feature. Her long dark hair fell along her shoulders and back. A black belly shirt and boot cut blue jeans defined her tone body. Around her neck she wore a necklace of pure amethyst.

Jazira had come out to this spot to think more often than he usually did. She was frustrated.

She had a gift. It was a gift that had forced her to live away from civilization for years for fear of endangering others. Many moons ago she had made the decision to keep her very existence a secret until the time was right. She wanted that time to be now. Three years ago to the day she had heard about aliens invading the planet. Curious, she had combed the internet, read the papers, and watched the news until, a few days later, she had heard about the disaster in Mission City. And entire city, once proud and strong, lay in ruins. The only explanation that was given by the public was an alien brawl.

Her curiosity reached its breaking point. She knew that if there was something out there that was trying to destroy Earth's cities, there clearly had to be something trying to stop it as well. Else the entire world might be in ruins by now. If that was true she wanted to be a part of it.

She set to work making phone calls, pulling strings, and telling a few white lies until she had finally managed to reach the man who was the source of her frustration: Major William Lennox.

She had heard firsthand about Lennox's involvement in Mission City and, by some miracle, managed to set up a meeting with him. It was in that one on one that she shared her greatest kept secret with him and asked his permission to work with the aliens. Lennox divulged information about the Autobots and told her that she had trusted him with her secret, there was no reason he couldn't trust her with his. They had exchanged a number to a secure military line to communicate and update each other. He told her he would consult Optimus Prime, the leader of the Autobots, of her proposal and get back to her.

She had left that day with high hopes of soon working with Prime and the other Transformers.

A year went by and NEST was formed. Jazira prepared herself with intense training to increase her physical and mental strength. But then, after another year of waiting and training, all hell broke loose. The Decepticons returned to the planet looking for revenge. Jazira begged Lennox to allow her to join NEST to help but he had refused. He had claimed that he didn't want to risk exposing and endangering her just yet. That had been a year ago. Since then the world had returned to peace. The Decepticons had been beaten back and NEST had returned to their faithful watch for them. But none had been spotted in months.

So what was Lennox waiting for? Did he want her to beg? She longed to be under the command of Optimus and the Major protecting the planet from the evil robots. Lennox had questioned her motives for wanting to fight with the Autobots so badly.

"It's because they know what it is to be different from the rest of the world," she had replied. "They transform just as I do. But although we don't share the same form we do share the same worldly rejection. And I think it would do the world good for us to both fight alongside each other knowing that was aren't alone on this planet."

That conversation had happened a week ago. She had not heard from Lennox since. Maybe it had all been a lie. Maybe Lennox hadn't intended to even allow her to join NEST….

She snapped out of her thoughtful trance when a bat burst from a nearby tree and flew off into the night to hunt. She rose to her feet, hopped off the rock, and began to stroll back down the back to her home. The bat had the right idea; it was time for some food. The walk was not far. She had only been walking for a few minutes before a large military hangar looking building appeared through the trees. It was here that she had spent many years living alone. The mountains and trees hid the large building quite nicely and it earned her solitude and silence. But it was time for her to leave the quiet sanctuary and return to civilization….of only Lennox would allow it.

She walked through the massive steel doors that lead to the main room of the building. The ceiling stretched 80 feet above her. The concrete floors were spotless. To her right sat dozens of machines she used for exercising. To her left were two doors. One led to the kitchen, the other led to her bedroom. On the far wall, a television hung above a stereo system that sat on a desk. In the center of the room, covered by a large black tarp, sat her pride and joy. She approached the object, grabbed the corner of the tarp, and yanked it off to reveal a deep purple Dodge Viper. She stroked the car's hood, tracing the two racing stripes that ran up the hood, across the roof, and down the trunk, and smiled.

"What do you think Amethyst? Time for some chow?" she asked the car. She received no response from the car but she nodded and headed for the kitchen. "Yeah I think so too."

A few minutes after disappearing into the kitchen she returned with a bowl of chef salad, a Luna bar, and a large glass of water. She set her dinner on the car hood, retrieved the tv remote from on top of the stereo, returned to the car, sat down on the hood, and turned on the television. The local news blared through the speakers. The headlining story began as she dug her fork into the ruffage.

"Tonight we continue our story of the work in Mission City," the reporter said "It has been three years since the event that took dozens of lives. The city is finally beginning to recover, and the damage has nearly been completely repaired, but the question still remains: 'Who or what did cause all this damage?'"

Jazira grumbled as she shoved a generous amount of lettuce, chicken, and cheese into her mouth. She hated the nosiness of people nowadays. People just had to know everything about everything.

But it bothered her that they pushed so hard on this subject.

Suddenly, just as she was about to shout an insult at the tv, the sound of a phone ringing filled the room. The tv screen went black and Jazira reached for the remote, pressed a button, and there before her, plastered on the television screen, was Major William Lennox.

"Good evening Major," Jazira said cheerfully. She wasn't sure why but she didn't want to let Lennox know that she was angry with him. She was expecting more disappointing news so she figured she might as well grin and take it. Lennox appeared tired but a warm smile was on his face.

"Jazira I thought I told you to do away with the formal bull," he replied. She quickly set her salad on the hood of the car and stood at attention.

"Sir, yes you did sir! And I will do what I can to do so sir!" she replied. The joke hung in the air for a few moments before Jazira giggled and returned to her seat with her salad in hand.

"So what can I do for you Will?" she asked. "It's been a while since I've heard from you, I was starting to think the base was attacked my Decepticons,"

Lennox's smile faded and he rolled his eyes.

"No, it was worse than that," she stated coldly. "We got a visit from Galloway," His smile returned as Jazira fell back onto the car in a fit of laughter.

"Well lock your windows and doors ladies and gentlemen! The asshole is in town!" She giggled as she sat back up. Lennox chuckled. Anyone who knew anything about the Autobots knew about Galloway. She was truly a horrible piece of work. Jazira made a mental note to give that man a piece of her mind if she ever got the chance as Lennox began to speak again.

"Well, he's gone now, but it's been a long few months," he said. Jazira's eyes widened. _Months? _She thought. "That's why I've called you today Jazira," Lennox continued. "Now that Lennox is out of our hair I think it's time that we finally get you out here with us in DG."

_I hope you guys liked it. Please rate, comment, whatever you want. Just give me some feedback so I can get better for ya! Oh, if you are wondering what Jazira's power is, you can ruin the secret by looking in my info, or you can wait until I keep going with the story. It's completely up to you. _


	2. Good News and Bad News

_Here's chapter 2! I got great feedback on the first one. Btw, thanks to everyone who sent me a review or put my story on their favorite stories list. =D Gonna try and make less typos on this one. I promise._

_Well, enjoy!_

Jazira froze. She couldn't have just heard that right. She could have sworn that Lennox just told her that he wanted her to go to Diego Garcia and join NEST. But she had to have heard it right. Lennox's smile all but confirmed it.

Jazira lifted her foot off the ground and held her leg out in front of her.

"Alright Will, you got one leg. Now go ahead and pull the other one." she said, slightly amused. Lennox laughed. Her sense of humor was surprisingly fresh for someone who had been living on her own for so long. She was truly someone he would love to have on the team.

"I'm completely serious Jazira," he replied. "Galloway's visit here has been keeping me from getting you down here sooner."

By now Jazira had finished her salad and had begun to work on her Luna Bar.

"Waid a seg," Jazira said before she could swallow the mouthful of her dessert. "Why the hell didn't you just tell me that you wanted me on the team but I had to wait until the dirt bag was gone?" she asked once she had swallowed.

"You're kidding right?" Lennox replied. "That guy has more connections than he knows what to do with. He would have undoubtedly heard about you and my invitation to have you here. Then, not only would he have my ass, he'd make damn sure that you'd never make it here," he paused before quietly adding "he'd probably try to turn you into some twisted government experiment."

Jazira considered Lennox's explanation before nodding in acceptance.

"Fair enough," she said. "So what's the plan now?" Lennox's warm smile of appreciation for her last statement abruptly shifted to one of guilt.

"Well, tonight's good news comes with some bad." He said. Jazira set her dessert next to her. She'd prefer not to choke on it if the news was so terrible as to make the great Major Lennox hesitate.

"Typical," she sighed. "Alright, lay it on me." Lennox's attention seemed to shift around from place to place as if he was giving the bad news to his wife.

"Well, here's the thing…" Lennox began. "Having you here isn't just my call, it's the Autobot's as well." Jazira could tell the Major was trying to be careful with his words.

"Yes?" Jazira edged him on.

"Well when I told you that I wanted you to become a member of NEST, I was speaking on behalf of the human members….." Lennox continued to hesitate.

"Ok..." Jazira's patience was growing thin.

"Don't misunderstand me now, we would ALL love to have someone like you here…"

"Dammit Lennox, stop trying to sugar coat everything and spit it out!" Jazira demanded.

"Optimus is on his way to determine if you should be a member." Lennox finished quickly, to the point.

Silence enveloped the room. Jazira sat there in shock. Her eyes fixed on the floor as she lost herself in thought.

'_Optimus is coming here to test me?' _She thought to herself. _'Does he think that Will's judgment isn't above reproach? Why wouldn't he trust him? Why wouldn't he trust ME?' _As soon as that final thought entered her mind she could have slapped herself. It disgusted her how selfish that sounded. Of course Optimus should test her. He's the leader of the Autobots and it's his responsibility to keep his soldiers safe. It was the right move to make considering the fact that he had never even seen her let alone spoken to her.

'_But wait….' _She thought. She remembered the first part of that Lennox had told her and panic welled up inside her.

"AW HELL!" She shouted, startling Lennox. She flopped back, exasperated, to lie on the car, her arms lay spread out beside her. Lennox gave her a questioning look.

"What?" he asked. Jazira didn't bother to sit back up to answer.

"Optimus frickin Prime is coming HERE and you didn't give me ANY time to prepare!" She yelled at the ceiling throwing her hands in the air. "I like to know when I have company coming over; especially when it's the LEADER OF THE AUTOBOTS!"

Lennox's worried expression changed back to his warm smile.

"I'll keep that in mind for the next time." He retorted with a grin. Jazira sat up and looked back up at Lennox's face on the tv screen.

"Ok, so exactly how long do I have until he arrives?" she asked. Lennox looked away from Jazira and over to what Jazira guessed was the other side of the room.

"Epps!" he shouted. A few seconds passed before the frame Lennox's friend and fellow soldier entered the view of the camera.

"What's up?" Epps asked.

"Did we hear from Optimus recently?" Lennox asked as he jerked his head toward the computer where the image of Jazira perched nervously on the car could be seen.

"Yeah, Big Man just contacted us." Epps replied and handed Lennox a piece of paper. Epps gave his friend a rough pat on the shoulder before walking out of view of the camera again.

Lennox reviewed the paper and smirked. He knew that Optimus was capable of making very good time but the big guy never ceased to amaze him. He as sure that Jazira wouldn't like what he was about to tell her but he wasn't about to lie.

"Well Jazira, we just heard from Optimus and he has reported that he is about 50 miles from your location," he paused before adding "he should be there in less than an hour."

Jazira's stomach dropped. _Less than an hour._ The words echoed in her head over and over again. She looked beside her, picked up the half eaten Luna Bar, and shook it naggingly at the television.

"Well congrats Will," she said. "You just managed to ruin my dessert."

_Well I hope you guys enjoyed that chapter. I wanted to try to bring a little more of Jazira's personality into things before we get into the juicy stuff. Next chapter we'll start with the action._

_On a side note: I'm so pumped that Transformers 3 comes out in a month. I'll be seeing it in theaters at least 5 times, and 3D will be a must. I decided to put my artistic talent to use and painted the Decepticon and Autobot symbols on my nails. Yeah, I'm that excited. =P_


	3. Ambush

_Hello again everyone! So, sorry this update's taken a while. I just got a promotion at work and learning all the new stuff has totally worn me out. I usually try to do my writing at night after work but lately I've been doing more sleeping than writing. But, I always try to please. So without further ado, here's Chapter 3._

Several miles from Jazira's home, the wind began to blow and storm clouds started to roll in as a massive Peterbilt truck barreled down the winding mountain road.

Optimus had grown tired of the day's travels. He had been in his alt form since sunrise the morning before. He had not stopped to rest at all. The mountains had proven to be a challenge for him in his tired state. It was clear that humans hadn't traveled the road he was on in years. Potholes dotted the pavement, speed limit signs were dilapidated and rusted, and weeds grew up between cracks in the tar.

No matter how hard he tried, Optimus couldn't avoid driving through a pothole every few feet. It was doing a number on his tires and he wanted nothing more than a nice long recharge.

But he couldn't stop; he had a job to do.

For some time now, his dear human friend and comrade, Major Lennox, had been trying to discuss the possibility of a young human femme to join NEST. Not as a soldier under Will's command, but a soldier for the Autobots.

The idea had perplexed him. Will was the leader of the humans and Optimus was the leader of the Autobots. Together they formed NEST. But this girl seemed intent on fighting under Optimus. What was it that made this girl so special that she would be more of an Autobot than a human? Lennox had chosen to keep that bit of information to himself. He had said that she had a gift but it was something that one would have to see for themselves.

And so, Optimus had chosen to indeed, see for himself. Regardless of whether she was fit to fight for NEST or not, he had to at least give her a chance. He would have to test her strength and see this gift of hers to determine if NEST was something that she really wanted to do. After all, hunting and fighting Decepticons was no easy task.

The moon glittered one last time on his magnificent blue and red flame paint job before disappearing behind the ever threatening storm clouds.

Optimus never really cared much for the rain. Aside from causing rust problems and joint stiffness, he found that it slowed down everyone's ability to work. But tonight, he was glad to see that rain was fast approaching. His entire body was covered in dust.

He grumbled as he turned a corner and saw another steep hill before him. He shifted gears and plowed on.

Suddenly, as he began to approach the top of the climb, he thought he heard the sound of jet engines. But that couldn't be. Will had said that planes don't fly over this area. But the sound grew louder and louder until, out of nowhere, Starscream streaked past him. A giant boom resounded in the air as Starscream spotted Optimus and turned in a burst of speed, breaking the sound barrier.

The rain began to fall as Optimus transformed and braced his pedes into the ground, taking a fighting stance. To his surprise, Starscream didn't attempt to strike. He merely circled overhead.

Optimus knew that Starscream was not the type to make his presence known before attacking. All Decepticons were like that. They preferred to attack their enemy from behind, leaving little chance for fighting back. Starscream couldn't be the only Decepticon there, not if he was merely scouting.

Optimus kept his optics on Starscream but kept his audio receptors keen to any movement around him.

He heard the next attacker before he could strike. Barricade, with cannons prepared to fire, burst from the trees and charged Optimus. Demolisher and Shockwave followed close behind. The three Decepticons prepared to bombard Optimus with brutal attacks.

Optimus raised his servos and both his energon swords slid forth with powerful sound of metal scraping metal. He was ready for them now.

With a thunderous crash Barricade tackled Optimus. Dirt and mud flew everywhere as the two behemoths crashed into the ground. The Autobot leader was quick to retaliate and pounded his helm into Barricade's face, completely smashing one of the Decepticon's optics and stunning him. With a feral growl, Optimus violently shoved the bot off him and sent him crashing into Demolisher, knocking him to the ground. Optimus barely had time to get to his feet before Shockwave sent two missiles hurtling toward him. Optimus managed to dodge one but the other struck him just below his chest plates where his armor was weak.

Optimus doubled over in pain but quickly shook it off. He charged toward Shockwave, energon swords glowing menacingly in the darkness. There was not much Shockwave could do to stop the assault. He was much better suited for long range attacks.

Optimus lowered his shoulder and drove it into Shockwave's chest plates sending him flying. With one swift movement Optimus turned, aimed, and threw one of his energon swords at Shockwave. The perfectly aimed blade drove itself into Shockwave's spark chamber, offlining him.

One Decepticon down, three to go.

Optimus turned back to Barricade and Demolisher ready to fight. Demolisher was waiting for him with a large tree he had uprooted. He swung it over his head in an attempt to crush Optimus. His reflexes too slow to stop it, Optimus took the blow head on. Dirt and tree bark rained down on him, getting stuck between his armor plates.

Optimus stumbled backward. He was running low on energy. The traveling had worn him down entirely too much to fight three Decepticons at his full potential.

Demolisher and Barricade must have sensed the Prime's exhaustion for they both unleashed a cannon blast toward Optimus. It was a double hit that had taken a strong toll. Optimus was blasted backward and slammed into the ground. He slid in the fresh mud for several feet, caching his armor with it, before colliding with a boulder.

Warnings flashed before Optimus's optics. He had sustained heavy damage. The two cannon blasts had hit him squarely on his chest plates, leaving them cracked and scorched. The missile that had hit him in the stomach had bent and burned many of his internal parts. And the hard collision with the boulder had cracked his helm, leaving him disoriented. Pain coursed through his circuits. He struggled to get up. The Decepticons snickered as the Autobot leader finally made it to his pedes.

"Why don't you just stay down Prime?" Demolisher mocked. Optimus raised his head and squared his shoulders, ignoring the throbbing pain that still coursed through his body. He had to keep fighting. He raised the servo that still had an energon blade and it slid forth once again. His optics flared with determination.

"Because I fight for the safety of this planet," He replied with a snarl. Demolisher and Barricade readied their weapons. Then, with savage yells, the massive transformers charged each other once again.

The rain pounded on the roof as Jazira paced beside her car. She had ended her call with Will about a quarter of an hour ago. Optimus would be there any minute and she had no clue so to what to do with herself.

Before she moved out to the middle of nowhere, when she lived with the rest of civilization, she would relentlessly clean everything when she knew she had company coming over. But now, she had so much time on her hands that she kept everything clean anyway.

She growled in frustration.

Why hadn't Will told her that Optimus was going to be coming to see her sooner? That was what angered her the most. It wasn't that Optimus was testing her, it wasn't that she wasn't immediately accepted into NEST, it was the fact that she had been caught off guard.

She decided to try and release some of her frustration with meditation. It had always helped her before. She sat just inside the doorway to the outside, crossed her legs, and closed her eyes. The sound of the rain quickly calmed her.

When she opened her eyes again she was no longer frustrated. She was however, a tad worried. Optimus should have arrived by now. She hoped that everything was alright. The road to get to her place was a miserable one, but it wasn't anything Optimus wouldn't be able to get through. Even in rain.

She stood up and walked to the threshold of the door. The wind blew rain into her face in a soft mist.

"Where are you Optimus?"

_Well there it is. Hope you guys liked it. Writing a fighting scene proved to be difficult for me but I think the result turned out to be a good one. And the fights aren't over. Mwahaha! =D Stay tuned for Chapter 4. _


	4. A Power Unleashed

_Hey guys! So I'm loving all the feedback I'm getting and the notifications that my story has been added to people's Story Alert list and what not. You guys are all awesome. I finished writing this today and I got MYSELF excited when I reread it. I can't wait to hear feedback on this one. Well, here it is, comin' at cha!_

Starscream's engines continued to whine overhead as he circled the battling robots. His anticipation was building.

It was clear that Prime would not last much longer against his Decepticon brothers. He was weakening rapidly and continued to take on heavy damage. Starscream wanted to take part in the battle. He wanted to be a part of the final destruction of the Autobot leader. But his master had given him specific orders to stay a safe distance away from the fight. After all, he was carrying precious cargo.

On the ground, Optimus was desperately trying to fend off Demolisher and Barricade. But he was so low on energy that he could no longer dodge attacks. He received blow after blow from missiles, bullets, and metal fists and was somehow still on his peds fighting back.

The two Decepticons were fed up with Optimus's persistence. He needed to be brought down.

Demolisher charged Optimus firing missiles as he went. One missile struck Optimus's leg, forcing him to his knees. Another hit him on the shoulder, causing a piece of his armor to be blown clean off. And the final missile hit Optimus squarely in the chest, just above his spark chamber.

Demolisher finished his charge with a powerful kick to Optimus's face, sending him crashing over a steep cliff.

Optimus was too weak to even attempt to break his fall. All he could do was wait for the impact.

He hit the bottom of the cliff with a loud metallic crash and rolled a few times before finally coming to a stop in a shallow, rocky, river.

Pain was all Optimus knew. Pain and darkness. He tried to get up but couldn't. He had no strength left and nothing with which to fight. His body shook as his spark began to flicker weakly.

Barricade and Demolisher jumped from the top of the cliff and landed at the base on their pedes, shaking the ground with their impact. Both had demonic grins on their faces as they surveyed Optimus lying in the river.

"Good work my minions," said a familiar menacing voice in the darkness. Optimus knew that voice all too well. He didn't even need to online his optics to know that his brother had appeared from the trees and was approaching him.

Megatron's bright red optics pierced the night as he looked down at his brother lying broken on the ground.

"You thought I would let you get away with it didn't you Prime?" growled Megatron. Optimus looked weakly at his brother. Angry red met dull blue.

Optimus knew what Megatron meant. He had killed Megatron's lord and master and now Megatron was looking to return the favor.

"LIFT THAT WRETCHED PRIME TO HIS FEET!" shouted Megatron. Barricade and Demolisher rushed forward, grabbed Optimus roughly by the servos, and forced him to stand.

Optimus wanted to fight back. He tried to move, to get the two Decepticons to release him. But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't muster the strength to do more than raise his head to look at Megatron.

"STARSCREAM!" Megatron bellowed at the fighter jet circling above. Starscream made a hard bank right and descended upon them. He transformed in midair and landed heavily, splashing mud everywhere.

"Yes my lord?" Starscream asked with a bow.

"The time has come to avenge my master," Megatron replied.

Starscream grinned as he reached back behind him to grab something that was attached to his back.

Optimus's optics widened in horror as Starscream pulled a broken staff from his back and handed it to Megatron with another reverent bow. It was the same staff that had belonged to the Fallen. Optimus had used it to rip the face plates off of the traitor a year before.

Megatron's sharp metal claws tightened around the broken staff. He stood there looking at Optimus in complete silence. H e seemed to be contemplating what to do next.

Then, without warning, Megatron drove the end of the staff into his brother where Shockwave's missile had struck him. The staff drove itself through Optimus's frame.

Optimus cried out in pain. Energon began to pour out of the wound as Megatron twisted the staff sending sparks flying from Optimus's body. Megatron ripped the staff out and watched with triumph as Barricade and Demolisher released Optimus and allowed him to fall to the ground again.

Optimus was blinded by the pain. He fought stasis lock. If he was going to die…again, he was going to die looking into his killer's optics.

Megatron stood on the spot and watched his brother suffer. Pools of Optimus's precious life blood mixed with the rain and the mud. He was enjoying the sight and he wanted to savor it. He knew that nobody was going to stop him from killing Optimus. And this time it would be for good.

The legacy of the Primes would die tonight. He would make sure of it.

Jazira stood in the doorway as the rain continued to pour down. She was becoming more and more worried. Optimus was almost a full half hour late and she knew that if anyone would be the type to be late, Optimus wouldn't be one of them.

She turned and started to walk towards the television to call Lennox.

She had only made it a few steps when a horrible, gut-wrenching scream echoed from the woods.

She turned on the spot and ran out into the rain. She listened for any sounds that might confirm her fears. She knew that scream he to have been Optimus. He was in trouble. Megatron must have gotten to him.

"Not on my watch you son of a bitch." She growled.

She closed her eyes and clenched her fists. She unleashed the power that she held deep within her. She felt her body begin to change. When she opened her eyes again, her pupils had turned to slits.

_Cue the dramatic music! Ok so that was chapter 4. Join me next time when I reveal Jazira's true powers. It's sure to be epic. =D_


	5. The Power of Fire

_Seriously cut into my sleep time on this one. I was literally at work, when there were no customers around, taking notes on what I wanted to happen in this chapter. Multi-tasking to the max! Enjoy you guys! Keep commenting and reviewing. It all makes me better._

Lightning flashed across the sky, briefly illuminating the rain-soaked landscape. Thunder clapped violently mere seconds afterward. None of this seemed to faze the Decepticons who stood at the base of the cliff staring victoriously at the last Prime who lay beaten on the ground.

Megatron circled Optimus like a lion circling its prey before pouncing in for the kill. Optimus tried desperately to remain functioning. His arms and legs were locked in place as his body tried to use all of its remaining energy to keep his spark from fading into oblivion.

Precious energon continued to flow from the gaping hole below Optimus's chest plates. Megatron stepped away from a stream of it that began to flow toward the river. He appeared disgusted, as if touching his own brother's life blood would contaminate him like a disease.

Megatron stuck the end of the staff under Optimus and lifted, violently tossing him onto his back. He stood over Optimus and stared onto his fading blue optics.

"I told you that as long as you fight for the weak you will always lose," he growled. "Your end is now Prime, and the rest of those parasitic Autobots will soon follow." He raised the staff over his head and prepared to drive it into Optimus's spark.

Optimus's vision was blurring. This was it. The end had come for him.

He waited for the final blow.

Suddenly, a rumble sounded in the woods. Megatron looked up in time to see a fireball fly out of the trees before striking him, forcing him to drop the staff and sending flying backward.

Optimus felt the heat of the fire and watched as Megatron was thrown away from him. Relief filled every fiber of his being as he felt himself slip closer toward stasis. Someone had come for him.

The Decepticons all stood and stared in shock as a massive creature emerged from the forest where the fireball had appeared. The creature was covered in thick, black, metallic scales. It walked on four powerful, muscular limbs. Two massive wings stretched half unfurled on its shoulders. Its tail reached twenty feet in length. Its head had a pair of horns protruding from the back with a line of smaller horns running along its jaw line.

It was a dragon. It was Jazira.

Her bright green eyes burned through the darkness, putting any Transformer's optics to shame. She growled at Megatron and the other Decepticons, baring her long, sharp fangs. Steam leaked from between her teeth into the night air.

She leapt forward and crouched over Optimus in a protective stance. Her attention was drawn toward the ground where the Fallen's staff lay in the mud. She dipped her head and picked up the staff in her jaws. Megatron could do nothing but watch as she clamped her jaw tightly, snapping the staff into pieces as if it were no more than a toothpick.

Megatron was furious.

He charged toward Jazira, his sword sliding forward from inside his arm.

Jazira knew she has to protect Optimus at all costs. But she had the element of surprise here. She braced herself, keeping a careful eye on the approaching blade. Megatron slashed his blade through the air towards her, aiming to behead her.

She lowered her head and intercepted the blade with her horns. She quickly gained the advantage by tossing her head to the side, thus casting aside Megatron's blade and throwing him off balance.

She took advantage of the moment and used the fire that burned deep within her to superheat her claws. She reared on her hind legs and slashed at Megatron. She tore through his armor with ease.

She finished her attack by leaping forward, beating her wings once to give her more speed and power. She slammed her body into Megatron, sending him crashing into Demolisher and Barricade.

She backed away from the Decepticons and returned to her defensive position over Optimus. Her eyes flashed as Starscream made a move to fight in his master's place. She barred her fangs briefly before she unleashed a powerful roar at Starscream. The bellow was loud and powerful.

That was enough to convince Starscream. He turned tail and took off into the night. Devastator and Barricade followed suit. They weren't willing to stick around a try their hand at defeating the creature anymore.

Satisfied with the result of her threat, Jazira dug her claws into the mud.

It was just her and Megatron now.

This time it was her turn to charge Megatron. She snarled and pounded toward her target. She lowered her head and aimed to stick her horns into Megatron's spark but Megatron grabbed her and pushed back against her. They struggled for a moment, each trying to gain the upper hand. Jazira used Megatron's momentum against him and relaxed the muscles in her neck. Megatron began to fall forward. The grip he had on Jazira's horns was released. In one swift motion Jazira pulled her head around behind Megatron, opened her massive jaws, and clamped down on the back of Megatron's neck.

Megatron roared in pain and frustration as Jazira slammed one foot into Megatron's shoulder to try to pin him down while she continued to crush his neck.

Desperate, Megatron flailed the arm that bore his blade, hoping to catch any part of Jazira's body. He was lucky and sliced a large gash into Jazira's thigh.

She yelped in pain and released her hold on Megatron, hissing. Having gained the upper hand again, Megatron rolled over and slammed his arm into Jazira's rib cage. She gave a strangled roar as she was thrown through the air, landing on her side a few feet from Optimus. She lay there, appearing to be unconscious.

Megatron rose to his feet, neck plates sparking. He walked to Jazira and held his blade just above her body, where her heart was.

"Farewell maggot." He snarled.

Jazira's eyelids bolted open and, quick as a cobra, she snapped at Megatron, shocking him.

She'd had enough. She opened her mouth and released a torrent of white hot flames toward Megatron. The fire hit Megatron full force in the face. He shrieked in pain. He backed away but Jazira got to her feet and pursued him. Again and again Megatron tried to back away and each time Jazira would follow, continuing to release the flames, burning Megatron. The heat began to melt Megatron's armor. He had no choice but to transform into his jet form and retreat back into space.

Jazira stopped breathing fire and spread her wings. With one mighty beat she was in the air. She tailed Megatron for a few seconds, roaring ferociously before backing off and stopping to hover on an updraft.

There was no point in her following him any farther. He would be back and she would have her chance then.

She watched the jet fly off as she began to descend; never letting her guard up until Megatron was completely out of sight.

She landed in the mud and folded her wings. Her green eyes closed as she released the hold she had on her power and she shrank back to her human form.

A whimper behind her caught her attention. She wheeled around to see Optimus lying in agony, still fighting stasis.

She swore under her breath and ran to his side. The gash in her leg was bleeding and throbbing, but she didn't care. She surveyed the damage. He was in terrible shape. Energon covered the rain soaked ground around him.

She went to his face and touched him tenderly. He was so cold. Optimus flinched at the sudden sensation.

"Shhhh." She whispered to him. "It's alright Optimus, they're gone now. You're safe." She began to stroke his face slowly and reassuringly.

Optimus struggled to online his optics. He managed to long enough to see the blurred figure of a young girl standing there. He couldn't make out her face but he knew that it had to be Jazira.

His optics went offline again and he began to tremble in pain. Jazira's eyes widened in panic.

"Optimus?" she said. "Optimus, talk to me."

Silence.

Fear flooded Jazira's thoughts.

He was hurt worse than she thought. He wasn't even able to keep his optics online, let alone speak. She had to get him back to her place and get him some help. But she wasn't sure how she would go about it without hurting him even more. She couldn't drag him. And she was pretty sure she wouldn't be able to fly with him. She would need to transform into a much bigger dragon than before and there wasn't enough space here for her to take off with that big of a wing span. She would have to get him onto her back.

She continued to stroke Optimus's face.

"I'm gonna get you out of here Optimus, ok?" she said. "But I'm gonna have to lift you." Another whimper escaped Optimus.

I know, I know it hurts," She soothed. "But you have to trust me on this. I'm gonna get you home and take care of you, alright?" She prepared to use her power again. She surveyed the cliff that she would have to scale to get back home. It was a steep climb.

She closed her eyes and her body began to change. Scales erupted all over her body, wings sprouted from her shoulders, her neck elongated, and a tail stretched forth. Her size, in comparison to Optimus, was slightly smaller, but the dragon she had transformed into was built for climbing and heavy lifting.

She nuzzled Optimus to prepare him for what was to come. She gently wiggled her nose under his arm, followed by his torso. She gently raised her head and attempted to worm her body under him as carefully as she could.

Jazira could hear every circuit in Optimus's body spark in pain. Optimus groaned as his broken body shifted. Jazira froze and waited for Optimus to relax a bit before continuing.

After about a minute Jazira finally had Optimus draped over her back.

Slowly, so as to not jostle him too much, she began to make her way back up the cliff and back home. All the while she continued to talk to Optimus in an attempt to keep him awake and aware.

"It'll be alright Optimus, just hang on."


	6. The Full Plan

_Hello again everyone. Please accept my apology for not updating until now. Work has been….well let's call it demanding. But let me say Happy Summer! Finally! I live in Maine so summer is a big deal for us since it's normally very cold. And this year, with the summer, comes TF3 and I'm going to throw a fit if I don't get to go see it soon. How many of you have seen it? Anyway, on with the story. _

The trip home was a tedious one. Jazira would frequently have to stop and use her tail to reposition Optimus on her back so he wouldn't slide off.

She sighed with relief as the warm lights of her home came into view through the trees. She stepped through the massive doorway and snapped her wings open to shake some of the water off. Rain water ran off her body onto the floor and her scales glittered brilliantly against the lights.

She snaked her head down toward the floor and eyed her car. She hated to do any damage to it but Optimus needed help and she needed to have more floor space so she could lay him down. Any damage done could be fixed later.

She used the tip of her nose to push the car to the other side of the room.

Once the floor was clear she crouched down and used her wings to shimmy Optimus onto the floor. She looked him over carefully. Now that she had better lighting the extent of the damage was visible. There was hardly an inch on the Autobot leader's body that wasn't damaged, burnt, or covered with mud.

She was relieved to see that the crack in Optimus's helm was not a large one. But the gaping hole below his chest plates continued to spill energon.

She didn't know much about the way Optimus's body worked, but she was certain that if his energon levels were to become too low, he would not survive.

She morphed back into her human form and touched Optimus's face.

"Optimus," she said softly, "Can you hear me?" Optimus's optics flickered slightly but that was the only response she received.

She bit her lip, nearing panic. She had to do something, quickly. He was fading fast.

She desperately tried to remember what Lennox had told her about how the Transformers worked, how they lived.

"_They are a lot like us" _His voice echoed in her head. _"Just like us, they have a single source of life: Their spark. If their spark goes out, they pass on."_

That was it!

She bolted over Optimus's arm, clamored up the side of his torso, and climbed onto his chest. From there she slid into his chest plates. His spark, normally bright, strong, and pulsing, was barely flickering before her. In the back of Jazira's mind she thought it reminded her of a candle's flame, ready to go out from lack of oxygen.

He had mere minutes left.

"Come on Optimus," she said "Stay with me."

She placed her hands on his spark. Closing her eyes, she focused her power and her energy.

During the many years she had spent alone, she'd stumbled on her ability to transfer some of her energy to others. She hoped it worked for Optimus.

It was his only chance.

She clenched her teeth and shut her eyes at the uncomfortable sensation of her energy leaving her body. But she continued to give it. She had to get Optimus stabilized, no matter how much of her strength it took.

After several minutes she felt Optimus shift below her. She opened her eyes and ceased the flow of energy.

Optimus's spark flared brighter and stronger. She smiled, satisfied.

She crawled out of Optimus's chest plates, careful not to step on anything that appeared damaged. Her legs trembled slightly. The sudden loss of energy was a shock to her body.

She poked her head from between his chest plates and her heart leapt with joy at the sight before her.

Optimus's optics were online and shining the most beautiful blue she'd ever seen.

Her happiness was short lived however as she watched Optimus struggle with the pain of his injuries.

She jumped off Optimus and onto the floor. She approached the puddle of energon beside her and eyed the wound. The energon seemed to be pouring from a line that had been completely severed when Megatron had impaled him with the staff.

Hoping that was the route to most of Optimus's problems, she turned and ran to the back door.

Optimus did not notice her go. He fought against the urge to groan in pain. He was vaguely aware of his processor flashing warnings of damage. He already knew that he was desperately low on energon and still continuing to lose it. But he was too weak to help himself. The boost of energy Jazira had given him was enough to keep him going for a little longer, but if he kept losing energon he would soon be too low to stay online.

Just as that thought crossed his processor, Jazira returned from the back with a large sheet of metal, a welder, sunglasses, and a measuring tape.

She deposited all but the measuring tape and the sunglasses onto the floor beside Optimus. She set the sunglasses on top of her head and patted Optimus on one of his massive fingers as she approached the gaping hole in his torso once again. Carefully, she wrapped the measuring tape around one end of the broken energon line to measure how big it was. Optimus's body twitched in pain at the touch.

"Sorry Optimus," Jazira said. "Almost done."

She finished her measurements, went to the sheet of metal lying on the floor, and marked it.

She transformed into a smaller dragon, no bigger than she was in human form, and used the same technique she had used in her battle with Megatron to superheat her claws. She scraped one claw along the marks on the sheet until she had the perfect cut-out. She brushed the scrap metal aside, opened her mouth, and unleashed a torrent of flame onto the metal. She used the heat of the fire to warp and bend the metal until a perfectly shaped, make-shift pipe lay before her. To finish, she flapped her wings, sending the air current toward the pipe, quickly cooling it.

She transformed into her human form and approached the wound again, carefully sliding each end of the pipe around each severed end of the energon line. It was a perfect fit.

She stepped back and thought for a moment. She knew she had to weld the pipe in place, and that worried her. Optimus was already in massive amounts of pain and blasting his worst injury with a welder would be agonizing. But she really had no choice. If she didn't weld the pipe in place it would fall off the moment Optimus moved.

She approached Optimus's face again. His optic covers were shut tightly and his face plates were tense with pain. She placed a hand tentatively on him and his optic covers snapped open. It truly was the most dazzling blue she'd ever seen.

"How you holding up?" She asked him.

He opened his mouth to speak but seemed to struggle with the words. He was still disoriented from the blow to the head.

"Losing…..energon." He managed to slur. His baritone voice swept over her. Fantastic eyes and a powerful voice…she made a mental note to have more conversations with Optimus once she got him stronger.

"I'm working on that," She said as she stroked her hand up and down the dirty metal. "But I have to use a welder to stop it completely."

Optimus's optics seemed to search Jazira's eyes.

"I'll be as quick as I can but you have to stay still," she said. "If you move I might cause more damage." Optimus blinked weakly before turning his head to look up at the ceiling, preparing himself. Jazira gave Optimus a reassuring pat before turning and jogging to the kitchen.

She returned moments later with a bucket of ice water. She set the bucket on the floor beside her work space beside the partially repaired energon line.

She pulled her sunglasses over her eyes, picked up the welder, and turned it on. Optimus tensed at the sound.

"Try to relax Optimus," she said gently. "I promise I'll make this as quick as I can." Optimus relaxed a bit and Jazira set to work.

The searing flames from the welder scorched the wound and Optimus clenched his fists and groaned in pain. Jazira cringed as she worked. She hated to cause him pain.

"It's ok Optimus," she soothed. "Let it out, it's alright." Optimus groaned again. Jazira continued to talk Optimus through the whole process. She reminded him that she was almost done and that everything would be alright.

Finally, she finished her welding and looked over her work. There were no leaks and everything was tidy. The metal glowed bright red. Optimus's pain tolerance began to push past its limit. He groaned desperately, body shaking. Jazira made a mad dash for the bucket of water.

"It's ok Optimus," she soothed. "Here, this should help." She lifted the bucket, tilted it, and slowly poured the water on the hot metal. Steam erupted from the pipe as it hissed and cooled.

It was a huge relief for Optimus and his cooling vents released a gush of air in a massive sigh.

Jazira smiled and walked to his face once again. Gratitude filled his optics. Jazira's smile grew warmer and she went to put the welder and other tools away. When she returned Optimus caught a glimpse of the deep gash in her thigh.

"You're….injured." he said to her. Jazira raised an eyebrow.

"Look who's talking." She said with an amused grin. She looked down at her leg and saw the bloody cut. "Oh yeah, so I am." She said casually. She really had forgotten that Megatron had managed to slash her. She took a moment to examine the gash. It would need cleaning and stitches. She rolled her eyes and swore under her breath.

She walked into her bedroom and returned with a large red bag. She grabbed the chair by the desk and dragged it over to Optimus. She grumbled as she sat down.

She reached into the bag and pulled out a bottle of hydrogen peroxide. She'd need a heavy duty germ killer for this job. She unscrewed the bottle, took a deep breath, and poured the clear liquid into the open wound.

She set the bottle on the floor as her leg exploded with pain. She clenched her fists, shut her eyes, and hissed with pain. She tried to remind herself that Optimus had just suffered double this amount of pain moments ago. She had no right to complain.

"If it's burning its working!" she shouted at herself.

She reached into her bag and removed a pile of gauze. She used the entire stack to thoroughly clean the dirt and grime out of the gash before reaching back into the bag and extracting a needle and nylon thread. She stitched her skin back together, covered the sutures with bandages, and cleaned up the mess.

When she returned from disposing of the bloody gauze, she returned to Optimus's side. Optimus had been watching Jazira tend to herself with interest. She clearly knew how to take care of herself as well as others.

"How are you feeling now?" she asked him. "Do you feel any of your strength returning?"

Optimus blinked wearily.

"It is difficult to say." he mumbled "Tired..."He winced as his still-open wound sent fresh waves of pain through his body. "Weak."

Jazira could hear every part of Optimus's complex body working to try to repair itself. She was sure that some of his more minor injuries would indeed repair on their own. But others would not.

She placed a hand on his face.

"Just rest then," she said. "Conserve your strength." Optimus seemed to consider her suggestion briefly before another, more powerful wave of pain lanced through his body. He groaned in discomfort and closed his optic covers. Jazira stroked his face in an attempt to comfort him.

"Easy Optimus," she soothed. "Just take it easy. Please try to rest." A few moments passed in silence as Optimus tried to start a much needed recharge cycle. Jazira hummed a soft song to help him relax. Soon Optimus had slipped into a deep recharge.

Jazira sighed with relief knowing that rest would help Optimus greatly. She remained beside Optimus for a few moments before turning and limping to the phone. Now that her leg had been stitched, she was more aware of it and how uncomfortable it was to walk on.

She turned on the television and dialed the number for Lennox. She stood impatiently as the line rang multiple times with no answer. She was about to terminate the call when Lennox's face appeared on the screen.

Jazira nearly jumped out of her skin at the sight before her. Lennox's face was covered with dirt and a bloody gash ran down his temple. He was panting heavily. An automatic weapon was still in his hand. He had clearly been fighting.

"Will?" Jazira said. "What the hell happened?"

Lennox eyed Jazira and noted how dirty she appeared and the bandage that was wrapped around her leg.

"You first." He demanded.

Jazira thought of insisting that he explain but she decided against argument.

"Optimus was attacked by Megatron and several other Decepticons," she said. "He's alive, but not doing so well."

Lennox's eyes widened in horror.

"They spared him?" he asked. Jazira snorted with amusement.

"No," she said bitterly. "Megatron was about to cut him in half when I got there." She crossed her arms and shifted all her weight to her uninjured leg. "I managed to get them to retreat back into space, but I'm sure they'll be back again."

Lennox closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. It was clear that he'd been through a lot that night. He lowered his hand and looked back at Jazira.

"It was a trap." He sighed. Jazira gave him a questioning look. "We were attacked here in Diego Garcia." He explained. "They wiped out our cargo planes and took off; and now I know why."

Rage flashed through Jazira's veins as she realized what Lennox was thinking.

Both attacks that night had been to ensure that Optimus would be killed with no interference. The Decepticons had tried to wipe out any chance of NEST reaching Optimus to back him up or get him back to base. No planes were left functioning that could accommodate his size.

They had set out to eliminate any chance of Optimus surviving.

And they almost succeeded.

_Hooray! Another chapter down! I figured that since you've already seen the sarcastic/humorous side of Jazira, as well as the ferocious fighting side, why not show the mother hen side too? Hope you guys enjoyed this one. Keep rating! =D_


	7. Warmth

_Hey! Long time no see! I've finally found time to update again. So, I'll save the small talk for later. For now, on with the story._

Jazira stood in silence and stared at the television. She had given Lennox a full description of what had happened to Optimus, or at least as much as she knew, and given a brief overview of the damage he had sustained.

Lennox had immediately reached for his radio and called for Ratchet. The big mech now stood in the view of the camera as Lennox gave him a brief explanation of the situation before turning back to Jazira.

"Jazira, this is Ratchet, the Autobot's medical examiner." Lennox explained. "Ratchet, this is Jazira, she saved Optimus and drove Megatron off."

Ratchet's optics narrowed onto the image of the girl on the screen before him. He nodded to her and she returned the gesture.

"I'm pleased that I finally get to meet you Ratchet," Jazira said. "Although I had hoped that it would be under better circumstances."

Ratchet bent forward to get a better look at the screen.

"As did I Jazira," he replied. "I've heard a lot about you."

Jazira smiled slightly, then sobered.

"Enough about me," she said. "Let's get to Optimus." Ratchet nodded.

"Agreed," he said gruffly. "Could you move your camera over to him so I can survey the damage?"

Jazira obliged and grabbed the cordless webcam that sat under the television. She wanted to leave Optimus to his rest without any disturbances so she pulled a Bluetooth from a drawer and slipped it over her ear. She turned around and walked toward the recharging mech lying wounded behind her. She held the camera up so Ratchet could get a good look. She heard him curse on the other side of the line.

Ratchet's spark clenched with anger and hatred. He glanced down at Lennox to see him standing there with his arms crossed and jaw clenched tightly. They both made a mental note to give Megatron hell when he returned.

They were snapped back to reality when Jazira spoke.

"He hasn't been out long," She said. "I managed to patch a major energon line that was severed in his torso but I'm not sure what else I can do."

Ratchet considered her words before replying.

"He needs to be brought back to base for proper treatment." He said. "The damage is severe and needs to be taken care of soon." Jazira set the webcam on the desk and sat in the chair. She attempted to cross her legs but found it to be too painful. She settled for keeping both feet flat on the cement floor below her.

Lennox turned to Ratchet, looking frustrated.

"How do you propose that happens?" he asked "All of our planes big enough to handle his weight are trashed, not to mention the fact that he's on the east coast of the United States and we're out here on this friggin island. That's close to ten thousand miles." Ratchet frowned in frustration.

"I don't know Major, but I suggest we figure something out or we will lose Prime." The medic snapped.

Jazira watched the two sympathetically. It was clear that they'd been through a lot that night and they both needed rest.

"I'll do it." She stated firmly. Both the mech and the human on the screen turned to her and gaped. Lennox was the first to speak.

"Jazira," he said "Optimus weighs a few dozen tons. I know that you can fly long distances but the likelihood of you getting him here on your own is slim."

Jazira blinked. She was slightly taken aback by the Lennox's lack of faith in her. But she really couldn't blame him. It would prove to be a difficult task. But she was determined to succeed.

"Let that be your opinion Will," she replied "The Decepticons came here tonight with one intention; to kill Optimus. And I'll be damned if he dies while I have something to say about it." She turned her attention to Ratchet. "Get some rest Ratchet, you could sure use it." She turned back to Lennox. "Will, I will be there in 24 hours. Make sure your soldiers all know I'm coming so I'm not shot out of the sky." And with that, she ended the call.

With a loud sigh she pulled the Bluetooth off her ear and dropped it onto the desk, leaned back in the chair, and rubbed her eyes. She was tired and sore. But she knew she had to ignore it and prepare for the long flight. Getting cleaned up was the first order of business.

She rose from her chair and limped back to Optimus to check on him.

The Prime lay completely still, deep in recharge. She gave her patch job a quick check before going to her bedroom. She flipped the lights on to the bathroom and, for the first time since her battle with Megatron, she got a good look at herself. She was a bit of a mess. Her entire body was covered in dirt. Her hair and clothes were still wet from the rain, and her jeans were torn.

Cursing Megatron for ruining her favorite jeans, she turned on the shower. She chucked her dirty clothes into the hamper before stepping into the cool water. It felt so good to get the grime off. Once cleaned and dried, she threw her hair into a ponytail and slipped into some clean clothes. She settled for a grey tank top and black sweat pants.

She turned and gasped in alarm as she spotted a figure standing in her bedroom doorway. For a moment she prepared to lash out at the intruder until she took a closer look.

It was a man who appeared to be in his late thirties. His hair was dark, almost black, his clothes were torn, bruises covered his body, and a blood stain covered the bottom portion of his shirt. He was barely on his feet. One hand clutched his side and the other held onto the door jamb for support.

Jazira's muscles tensed as he met the man's eyes. They were a striking, steely blue.

She recognized those eyes.

"Optimus?" she breathed, taking a tentative step forward. He tried to take a step toward her but stumbled and began to fall forward. Jazira ran forward and caught him. She draped his arm over her shoulders and wrapped her arm around his waist to hold him up. She helped him to the bed where he lay down with a painful gasp.

Jazira sat on the bed beside him with one foot on the floor and the other beneath her.

"Optimus? She asked again. "What's happening Optimus? What's wrong?"

He reached for her and grasped her arm. He moved her hand onto his chest. There was no heartbeat.

"Holoform…" Optimus managed to say. Jazira nodded in understanding. The man before her was just a type of hologram meant to relay Optimus in human form.

Jazira rubbed her hand up and down over his chest. He closed his eyes and she felt his muscles relax. The small strokes comforted him.

"Optimus, you should be resting." She whispered. "We won't be here for much longer. Then I have to get you back to Ratchet."

Optimus's eyes opened a fraction. He reached for her hand. His grip was weak and icy cold.

"Ja…zi…ra…" he moaned. Jazira leaned closer to him and squeezed his hand comfortingly.

"I'm right here." She soothed. Optimus began to shake.

"Cold." He said. Jazira frowned.

"Alright," she replied. "Get your holoform turned off and save your strength. I'll see if I can get you warmed up a bit." Optimus nodded and his holoform flickered slightly before disappearing completely.

Jazira jumped off the bed and rushed back out into the garage. She approached Optimus and put a hand on his armor. He was indeed very cold.

She focused her strength and transformed into a large red dragon. Her scales rippled orange in the lights above her. He opened her wings to reveal shinning golden webbing. She crouched next to Optimus and draped a wing over him. Warmth radiated from every scale on her body. The warmth felt wonderful to Optimus and he welcomed it gratefully.

"Your temperature regulation processor must have been damaged in battle." Jazira said.

It wasn't long before Optimus felt the pull of the darkness again and Jazira watched as he drifted back into recharge.

Deciding to allow Optimus more time to rest, Jazira settled on the floor completely, resting her head on his chest plates, displacing more warmth. She closed her eyes and dozed lightly.

An hour later she was roused by Optimus shifting beneath her. She lifted her head and stretched her neck. Her forked tongue curled and her jagged teeth gleamed as she yawned.

She looked down at Optimus who onlined his optics.

"Better?" Jazira asked. Optimus nodded in response.

She snorted slightly, satisfied with herself.

She rose to her feet.

"Ready to go home?" she asked. Optimus blinked. The term 'home' seemed to describe several places for the Autobots now, but he knew that she meant Diego Garcia.

He nodded grimly.

She shut her eyes and changed into a much larger silver dragon. Her wingspan reached about seventy feet and her overall height reached around forty feet. A mane of long, white hair ran from the back of her head to her tail. A long ivory horn protruded from her nose and her scales had softened.

She crouched beside Optimus again and tucked her wings tightly against her body.

Then, just as she had before, she wriggled her nose under Optimus and gently helped him onto her back. Optimus managed to help her at times. She situated him so his helm rested up on her shoulder blades where the soft mane was thickest before getting to her feet.

She looked outside. The rain had ceased and a thick layer of fog now covered the landscape. She snaked her head around to address Optimus.

"I need you to hang on as tightly as you can Optimus," she said gently. "If at any point you feel that you need me to stop and let you rest, don't hesitate to say so."

He responded with a nod before wrapping his servos around Jazira's neck.

"Go." He said.

Jazira turned to the open door and opened her wings slightly. She stepped out into the crisp night air. As soon as her wings were clear of the doors she snapped them open and began to bound toward the trees. She pumped her wings a few times but Optimus's weight held her to the ground. She pumped harder and more rapidly and leapt toward the sky. She slowly started to climb. Her muscles strained and her breathing became labored as she desperately tried to gain enough altitude to clear the tree tops. With a growl, she gave one vicious wing beat that was enough to get her over the evergreens and into the sky.

For the next several hours she struggled to climb, to gain altitude, to get to the clouds and out of sight. Finally, she reached them and leveled off. The condensation from the clouds collected on her scales and ran down her neck. She shivered at the sensation.

She found a strong updraft and let it carry her along so she could try and recover from the exertion.

She looked back at her passenger whose grip on her neck had loosened. His optics were dull from exhaustion and pain. She tried to relay reassurance through her gaze.

'_You'll be home soon Optimus,' _she thought as she turned back to face the night sky. _'I just hope my strength holds out.'_

Back on Diego Garcia, Lennox and Ratchet were striding side by side through the main hangar. Ratchet had already attended to the few Autobot and human injuries. That was the only thing he considered positive about the whole ordeal: there were few injuries and no casualties. The Decepticons did what they intended to do and didn't stick around.

Will had given the order to have all uninjured soldiers and all Autobots report to the main hangar for a debriefing of Optimus and Jazira's situation.

Lennox climbed up the ladder to the communication platform and turned to his soldiers who had gathered below.

"Alright everyone listen up!" she shouted over the crowd. Everyone fell silent.

"We've got a situation…"

_Hey! Look at that! I got another chapter in! Hope you guys liked this one._

_I saw TF3 several times. I've been walking around the house quoting the epic lines from the film. Haha. I just can't believe that they're making us wait until November to release the DVD. Kinda makes me pissed. I hear there will be lots of cool deleted scenes. _

"_Your leaders will now understand. Decepticons will never leave your planet alone. And we needed them to believe we had gone. For today, in the name of freedom, we take the battle to them!" =D_


	8. Rest For The Weary

_Hey guys! What's up? So, sorry for taking so long to update again. I would have had this on last night but Hurricane Irene bitch slapped us and we lost power for a good 18 hours. And no power means no wifi and no wifi means no updates. But it's all good now so on with the story. Read my snippet at the bottom for an interesting concept I have for you guys. =D_

Day or night, cloudy or clear, windy or calm, Jazira didn't know the difference. Everything was a blur. She was only aware of the painful strain on her wings and shoulders to keep herself in the sky, and the steady humming of Optimus's spark pulsing feebly against her spine.

She wasn't sure exactly how far she'd gone or how long she'd been flying. It felt like she'd been airborne for a whole day. In reality, her flight thus far had consisted of ten hours. She had flown almost the entire expanse of the Atlantic between the east coast of the United States and the west coast of Africa.

But she never would have been able to guess that.

She knew where she was going. She had an amazing sense of direction and knew where Diego Garcia was located in reference to the U.S. Her sense of time however, had been distorted.

She was snapped back to full awareness as Optimus moved for the first time since the trip had begun. He lightly patted her shoulder. She stiffly craned her neck back to look at him. Every muscle in her neck was cramped. She silently cursed herself for not thinking to stretch from time to time.

Optimus appeared to be losing strength. It was clear that he had been suffering in silence for hours. The look in his optics said it all for her.

It was time for a break.

She gave him a brief nod before turning back to the expanse of sky before her. The Atlantic still stretched on before her with no apparent end in sight.

Then, far in the distance, a hazy stretch of land made itself visible on the horizon. Smoke erupted from her nostrils as she sighed with relief. She pulled her wings in toward her body a fraction of an inch and began to descend slowly and smoothly.

A half an hour later, the coast was upon them.

Jazira leveled herself out to coast inches over the water. As the shore began to pass below her, she flapped her wings backward to slow herself enough to land. Her muscles screamed in protest as her wing beats became more rapid. Grains of sand were thrown through the air with every beat. Her claws sank into the sand as all four of her scaly feet made contact with the ground. Her legs nearly gave out as Optimus's weight pushed against her sore body.

Optimus, realizing Jazira's struggle, allowed himself to roll off her back and land with a sickening thud beside her. He grunted painfully as his open wound was jarred heavily from the impact.

Jazira shrieked in panic and rushed to his aid.

"Optimus!" she cried. "I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to land so hard." Optimus shook his head and groaned.

"It was my error….Jazira." he replied. "You must…preserve your…strength." Guilt still coursed through Jazira.

"Optimus don't worry about me," she said. "Let's just focus on getting you back alive."

Her words didn't ease Optimus's concern for her. She was still in her silver dragon form. Her limbs were trembling with the effort to remain standing, her wings remained unfurled and dragged on the ground rather than folded neatly against her body, and she was panting.

It was clear that her strength was dwindling quickly. Jazira however, would never admit it.

She had always been strong willed and now, more than ever, Optimus needed someone. She wouldn't let him down.

It only took a few minutes for Optimus to overcome the pain of the impact. Jazira stayed beside him until he relaxed. It was then that she realized that she wasn't in as good condition as she was leading on. Every fiber of her body cried out for relief from the exhaustion, pain, and hunger.

She turned to face the open ocean. Remaining in her dragon form was the only way she could conserve enough energy to finish the journey to Diego Garcia. But it would also help her get food.

She turned to Optimus and met his tired gaze.

"I need to eat Optimus," she said "I'll be back in a few minutes tops." Optimus nodded and she staggered into the ocean until her scaly body was completely submerged and only her neck remained above the surf. The cold water felt wonderful.

With a quick glance backward at the mech lying on the shore, she inhaled and sank into the water and began to dive. She dove deeper and deeper until, there before her, schools of fish began to appear.

She knew that if she was to catch something to satisfy her and give her enough strength to get her and Optimus to NEST, it would have to be a rather large fish and she would have to catch it rather quickly.

Under normal circumstances she would transform into a water dragon, a sea serpent of sorts, to help her move through the water and hunt.

But the circumstances were far from normal.

Each time she transformed it sapped a bit more of her strength. She'd already transformed into different types of dragons five different times since she'd rushed into the woods to Optimus's aid. The hand to hand combat with Megatron, scaling a cliff with Optimus draped on her back, and giving a generous amount of her energy to the Autobot leader did nothing to help her endurance for the trip either.

With all that weight on her mind, she knew she had to preserve her strength and remain in the same form for the remainder of the journey.

But speed was everything to her now. Her water dragon form would have given her gills, but her current form forced her to hold her breath. If she went up for air, it would frighten all the fish away and she would go hungry.

She swam close to the ocean floor until she came to a large boulder. She used her keen hearing to try and listen for any sign of a large fish to claim as her prey. She heard a sound on the other side of the boulder. It sounded very much like a fish.

She snaked her head around the rock to get a peak at her future meal. She was pleasantly surprised to see a massive Atlantic Tarpon. It was freakishly large and its scales glittered silver.

Before the fish had any time to react to her presence, she snapped her jaws around its body and crushed its spine.

Satisfied, and in need of air, Jazira pushed off the rock and rose to the surface.

Water ran in sheets off her body as she pulled her prize onto the beach. As she slapped the fish down on the wet sand, she noticed that Optimus has fallen into recharge again. She was relieved that she wouldn't have to make Optimus watch her devour the fish. She wasn't sure how Optimus felt about human table manners but a dragon, by nature, is a blood thirsty carnivore and it showed when she ate in dragon form.

With a savage growl she tore into the tarpon's body and ripped off chunk after chunk, each time swallowing it whole like a crocodile. She enjoyed a good fish in human form but everything was so much more satisfying to a dragon.

When she had picked the carcass clean, she stretched her cramped body and approached Optimus.

She felt stronger now that she had food in her belly. Granted, she was still exhausted, but her muscles no longer trembled from strain and she felt more alert.

She lay in the sand beside him and allowed herself to be pulled into the warm embrace of sleep.

She was awakened an hour later by Optimus who had been roused from recharge by a searing pain throughout his body. The tide had come in quickly and the salt water irritated his already damaged and exposed circuits.

The waves were still reasonably small so Jazira formed a barrier between Optimus and the water with her tail. But the reality was that it was time to move on. Optimus was growing weaker and the borrowed energy wouldn't last him much longer.

She crouched beside him and nuzzled him.

"Time to get a move on Optimus." She said

Optimus was silent as Jazira got him back onto her back. She was worried. Optimus had barely said more than a sentence since they'd left her home. Time was short.

She turned to the south to look down the stretch of beach. Taking off would be easier this time. There were no trees to struggle to clear. But she would have to climb quickly to get out of sight again.

She began to run along the beach, steadily gaining speed. Her razor sharp talons dug into the sand with every step.

"Hold on!" she shouted as she broke into a dead sprint and snapped her wings open. A gentle ocean breeze combined with her speed gave her the perfect conditions for takeoff.

She flapped once, twice, three times, before pumping her wings rapid fire. She clenched her teeth and snarled. She was trying to get airborne with every ounce of strength she had, but she had little left to work with.

Her body protested as she pumped harder and leapt into the sky. For a moment she became dangerously close to crashing back to earth, but her determination shone through and she began to climb back toward the clouds.

She made a hard bank left and continued the struggle to Diego Garcia.

_Well that's chapter 8. That took long enough. I hope you guys liked it. A special thanks to panther1122 for helping me figure out what fish Jazira should catch. I was being picky. =P_

_Now for something slightly different. I can't decide if I want to have romance between Jazira and Optimus or if I should have them just be really close friends. Initially I was going to have just friendship, but now I'm not so sure. So, I'm letting you, my wonderful fans, decide. You guys are all so awesome for supporting me and giving feedback that it should be up to you. So the voting begins now and it will end when this story is over in a few more chapters._


	9. Home

_Holy crap guys! Long time no see! I missed you all! My work schedule has been INSANE leaving me with literally NO time to write most days. Plus, I've been stuck in a writing rut; for sure my worst enemy. But have no fear. Soon it will be winter and things slow down in the winter time. So I'm hoping that will give me more time to think and to write. For those of you who have voted on the pole I put out in the last chapter, thank you very much, I'm keeping a tally. For those of you who haven't, hop to it! Every day that goes by that I don't post another chapter is another chance for you to vote! =D But anyway, enough of my rambling. Back to the story._

It was noon on the island. The warm ocean water sent foamy waves toward the beach that crashed over the sand. A light sea breeze blew the dry sand about. The beach was completely abandoned…save for one being. A yellow Autobot stood completely stoic on the beach with his optics on the sky, unwavering.

Bumblebee had not only volunteered to watch for Jazira and Optimus's approach, he had practically begged for the job. To Bumblebee, Optimus was, as humans would say, a father figure. After the young mech's creators perished in the Great War, Optimus had taken Bumblebee in as if he was his own. And now, Optimus was hurt and it would take a keen eye to see what approached on the horizon. The quicker the Autobots and the rest of NEST knew of their arrival, the sooner they'd be ready to get Optimus into emergency repairs.

Back inside NEST's main hangar, Ratchet was rushing about preparing sick bay with every tool he would need to repair Optimus. Ironhide was cleaning his weapons in preparation for battle should Decepticons follow Jazira and Optimus. All remaining Autobots were aiding their allies in cleanup from the attack the night before. So, in all reality, Bumblebee was one of the few who were available to keep watch.

A black speck in the distance caught Bumblebee's attention. His optics widened in excitement as he focused on the shape. His shoulders sagged as closer investigation revealed it to be no more than a seagull.

Growing anxious, he began to pace up and down the beach, all the while continuing to watch the horizon. He began to think back on everything he'd heard about the mysterious girl that possessed the strange power to transform into dragons. He knew very little about what a dragon was; there were no such creatures on Cybertron. Upon searching the internet for information, he discovered that they don't really exist on Earth either. Some believe that they did exist once; others believe them to by nothing more than a myth.

Bumblebee probed deeper into his search. Dragons, is seemed, were giant lizards that could fly on powerful wings and breathe fire. Some religions believe them to be a sign of evil, and some cultures believe them to be creatures that brought good luck and symbolize justice and strength. He found source after source telling of what dragons were believed to be like but no matter how hard he searched he could find no record of a dragon named Jazira that lived on the east coast of the United States.

Questions began to flood Bumblebee's processor. Why would this girl ask to join the Autobots? How did she manage to defeat Megatron in battle as Major Lennox had said? Would she truly be able to get Optimus across two oceans and a continent as she had claimed? What if she was caught? What if she had become exhausted and fallen into the ocean taking Optimus with her?

Just as that thought was processed, Bumblebee's optics caught another shape in the sky. He squinted, focusing in on the shape. It was much larger than a seagull. It had wings, a long neck and tail, four legs, and a large blue and red mass on its back.

Bumblebee chirped and whistled and jumped up and down with relief that Jazira had gotten Optimus home safely. But as he watched, he became still.

Jazira's altitude seemed to be fluctuating dramatically. Her flight patterns would dip and rise again over and over as if she was slipping, then climbing back up. Her head was dipped, her neck and tail drooped, and the silver scales and white mane of hair that ran down her back appeared to be stained a deep red in places. However, they did not appear to have been followed.

Bumblebee turned and sprinted back to base. He didn't take the time to transform, nor did he stop to wait for the gate to the perimeter fence to open for him, he merely jumped it. He didn't stop until he reached the main hangar where Ratchet was bustling about with Ironhide and Sideswipe close by.

Desperate whines, chirps and whistles echoes through the building as Bumblebee sprinted inside. Not even his fellow Autobots could understand what he was trying to say. Ratchet placed a hand on Bumblebee's shoulder as the youngling bent over, braced his hands on his thigh plates, and cycled air through his vents at an alarming rate.

"Calm down Bumblebee." Ratchet said "What's wrong?"

Bumblebee looked up at the medic and emitted three words from his radio; a famous line from Legolas in Lord of the Rings.

"He is here."

The attention of every human and Autobot in the hangar snapped toward the yellow bot. Ironhide retracted his cannons and strode up to Bumblebee.

"Optimus is here?" he weapons specialist asked him. Bumblebee could only nod.

There was a nanosecond of silence before the hangar erupted into chaos. Lennox shouted orders for the soldiers to get out and make room for an injured Optimus and possibly an injured dragon as well. As the building cleared, the Autobots and a few select humans followed Bumblebee back to the beach.

They watched as the massive silver dragon approached. Jazira was in terrible shape. It was clear to everyone on the beach. She could barely stay airborne and appeared to be struggling to keep Optimus from sliding off her back.

T only took a matter of minutes for Jazira to finally make it to the beach. With her last ounce of energy she glided over the last few feet of water and attempted to land on the strip of beach the soldiers had cleared for her. But her exhaustion finally won her over and she collapsed to the ground from about twenty feet in the air. Optimus's weight came down on her with a crushing force and snapped several of her ribs, forcing her to give a strangled howl of pain.

Ratchet and Ironhide rushed forward and lifted their limp leader off Jazira and laid him in the sand beside her. Optimus was in stasis lock but was still alive.

Sending a brief thank you to Primus, Ratchet wordlessly motioned to Ironhide to help him get Optimus to the hangar and motioned Bumblebee to stay with Jazira. Within minutes the CMO had Optimus lying on the medical berth with multiple energon lines hooked to his broken body. The repairs would likely take all day and most of the night but Ratchet hoped that he would be able to bring the last Prime out of stasis lock by morning.

Back on the beach, Lennox and Bumblebee were trying to help Jazira. The scales on her back had been shredded by Optimus's armor and many of the muscles in her shoulders had either been torn or severely strained. The ribs that had been broken when she crashed were preventing her from breathing properly and the gash on her leg lay infected against the rough sand.

"Bumblebee," Lennox said to the yellow mech. "Go get Ratchet back down here, she needs to be treated." Bumblebee turned to leave but a loud whine from Jazira stopped him.

"Bumblebee…no!" she panted. "Ratchet…needs to…care for…Optimus." She looked at Bumblebee with pleading eyes. "You can…help me."

Bumblebee approached Jazira and knelt beside her.

"How can I help?" He asked in his own voice which seemed to be improving. Jazira raised her head off the ground to him, grimacing as the movement made the pain in her shoulders worsen.

"You must open my…wings so…they can catch…the sun." she explained.

She was lying on her side, one wing partially unfolded, resting on the sand and the other lay crumpled beneath her. With much hesitation, Bumblebee reached for her wing as if she might attempt to bite him. Jazira merely laid her head against the sand again and clamped her eyes shut.

Bumblebee gently pulled Jazira's wings out until they were completely unfurled and lay stretched out beside her. Lennox looked confused.

"Now what?" he asked. His question was answered almost immediately as a cloud drifted past to reveal the sun.

Then, with a dazzling brilliance, the webbing on Jazira's wings began to shimmer. As the glowing grew brighter and more intense, the light seemed to travel from her wings to the rest of her body.

"What's happening?" Lennox exclaimed. Jazira's eyes opened slightly. No expression of pain remained on her scaly face. Only bliss and relief remained.

"I am absorbing the sun's rays and converting it into energy." She purred. "Soon I will be back at full strength." She turned to look at Bumblebee. "Thank you Bumblebee," she said gently. "I owe you one."

Bumblebee's facial plates lifted into a smile. He was so relieved that his oldest friend Optimus, and his new friend Jazira, were on the road to recovery.

_Wow, that was a long time coming. Again, I'm really sorry this one took so long. I hope you guy's hadn't given up on me. Love you all and or now I'll peace out. I'll try really hard to get the next chapter in sooner._


	10. Introductions

_Hey guys! So I'm sure I've made some fans bummed by going so long without updating. Well we can all thank my old laptop for that. It crashed and it took forever for me to save up for another one and get the software for it. Of course, saving up the money meant getting a second job so now I hardly have any time to write. But anyway, I finally came up with the time to sit down and write so here's Chapter 10. A little Christmas present from me to you!_

Bumblebee remained with Jazira until she seemed content with the amount of sunlight she had absorbed and the glowing dissipated into nothingness.

He watched as Jazira got to her feet with a fair amount of difficulty. It was clear that she had not generated enough energy and still needed a considerable amount of rest. Her wings still drooped and the nasty gash on her leg and shredded scales and flesh on her back still appeared to carry risk of infection.

As Jazira made a move to walk to the base, Bumblebee stepped into her path, forcing her to stop. Jazira looked at the young scout questioningly.

"You've done enough," came a voice from his radio. "Become human….I'll carry you." Static laced Bumblebee's radio between playbacks of different quotes of movies and songs.

Jazira shook her head and straightened her neck upwards to appear less worn down.

"I can't Bumblebee." She said. Bumblebee marveled at how the creature before him was clearly speaking to him but wasn't moving its mouth. The voice sounded female with a purring echo behind it.

"My shoulder muscles are too badly torn for me to transform back into human form right now." She explained. "A cut is one thing, torn muscles is another. It would be like you trying to transform with damaged joints."

Bumblebee understood. But Jazira could still see defiance in his features. He still refused to allow her to walk. Jazira lowered her head slightly and blinked.

"Bumblebee, I'm alright," she said gently. "I am not the priority right now, Optimus is."

The scout froze at the sound of Optimus's name. Horrific images on his leader lying dead in the forest at Megatron's peds flooded his processor. His shoulders sagged and the door wings on his back drooped as he let out a sad whine.

He knew Jazira was right and he couldn't bear to see Optimus dead again.

After a moment's silence, Jazira approached the scout, dipped her head, and nuzzled Bumblebee's chin. He raised his head but avoided her gaze.

"Let's get Optimus taken care of," she purred softly "Then you can take care of me all you want." She lifted her tail off the ground and circled it around herself until the tip was between the two of them in a gesture to shake. "Deal?"

Bumblebee looked from the tail to the glowing emerald eyes before him. Slowly, his facial plates shifted to a small smile and he grasped the tail and shook.

From there they made their way to the base. The pace was slow: Jazira's shoulder muscles made walking more difficult than she initially anticipated. Dried crimson blood and dirt cached her scales making each movement feel as if her flesh was being peeled away with a belt sander.

To take her mind off the discomfort, Jazira scoped out the landscape. All the soldiers had returned to base with Lennox to give Jazira some space to rest and all that remained were footprints and an expanse of sand and dry plants.

Hoping the other parts of the island were more colorful, Jazira turned her head to look forward and saw the large hangars and landing strips of NEST. It was simpler than she imagined it. But she liked simple.

A large crowd of humans was gathered around one of the hangars. Jazira guessed by the red cross over the hangar door that it was Ratchet's medical bay. She gathered her strength and quickened her pace.

A few startled exclamations echoed through the members of the crowd who had not been present for Jazira's arrival. Bumblebee gently raised a hand to quell their nervousness. The soldiers parted to make way for the dragon and scout and a new and terrible sight met Jazira's eyes as she stepped into the cool shelter.

Optimus lay on a large metal berth by the right wall with tubes of energon hooked to his chest and arms. Many of his armor plates had been removed and lay in a pile against the wall. However, most of the armor resembled crushed cars more than protective plates.

Even without his armor, Optimus was a mess. Dirt caked every inch of his scratched and dented body. The puncture wound in his torso sparked and steamed as Ratchet worked feverishly to repair it.

A frenzy of whispers on the opposite wall tore her attention away from the gruesome sight. She turned her head to see a number of Autobots crowded together, staring at her. An awkward silence ensued as both sides thought of the right thing to say.

"You might start by thanking her." said Ratchet without taking his optics off the task at hand. "She did just save Optimus after all."

The largest of the group stepped forward and stared at her. The mech eyed her long talons and the horn on her nose and Jazira admired his sleek, shiny, black paint job. They both studied each other momentarily before the mech jerked his arms forward to retract his hands and bring out his plasma cannons. They whirred threateningly as he pointed them at her. Jazira reacted instantly and her muscles tensed as she opened her mouth slightly and brought the fire in her gut to her mouth where it pulsated and flickered, at the ready.

A twinkle of amusement flashed across the Autobot's optics and he retracted his cannons.

"She's got good reflexes." He boomed in his gruff voice. "I like her already." Jazira eyed the black mech with suspicion. She snuffed out the fire in her mouth by snapping her teeth shut. The silver Autobot in the group skated forward.

"Don't mine Ironhide." He said as he approached her. "He's our weapons specialist. It's hard wired into his processor. The name's Sideswipe." He said with a smile. "The blue one over there is Jolt, the little one is Wheelie, the green and red morons over there are Skids and Mudflap, and I know you've met Bumblebee and Doc. Grouch over there."

Ratchet ignored the comment as Skids and Mudflap stalked over.

"Who ya callin' morons ya talkin' roller skate?" piped up Skids. They both moved to stand on either side of Jazira as Mudflap chimed in too.

"Yeah, and who says you get to be her best friend?" he said "Maybe she wants to hang with us." And with that they both gave Jazira a friendly slap on the shoulders.

The double slap triggered fresh waves of pain to lance down her back and up her wings. Her eyes clamped shut and she bellowed in agony before falling to the floor, unable to bear her own weight under the shock.

Ratchet dropped his tools and stepped out from behind the berth.

"Alright!" he shouted "Everyone out!" He pointed at the twins. "Especially you two, before I use you for parts to repair Optimus!"

As the bots left, Ratchet turned to see Bumblebee trying to help Jazira stand so they could leave the medic to his work.

"You two stay here." He said in a gentler tone once everyone else had left. Ratchet closed the door and turned to address Bumblebee. "Go get one of the blankets and a bucket of hot water." He said.

Bumblebee obeyed and within minutes he had returned with a ratty old military blanket that had clearly been recycled to let Ratchet use as a rag, and a large, Autobot-sized bucket of hot water.

"Get her cleaned up so I can bandage her wounds." Ratchet said.

It was a painful process for both Jazira and Bumblebee. The extent of Jazira's injuries was worse than Bumblebee expected. Some of the gashes in her back and shoulders had shards of Optimus's armor protruding from them. Each time Bumblebee would pluck a piece of metal from her back, Jazira would give a twitch of discomfort. Bumblebee worked efficiently however, as each tiny speck of dirt and each bit of steel was removed. The stitches in her leg, which had been torn completely out, were given special attention and cleaning.

Ratchet stabilized Optimus enough to plaster bandages on her and check for any sign of infection.

Once convinced that rest was the only medicine Jazira needed, Ratchet returned to Optimus.

Bumblebee helped Jazira stand and walk to the berth. They stood side by side and watched Ratchet until the medic finally insisted that Bumblebee had done all he could and he should leave Jazira to her rest.

"Go ahead Bumblebee." Jazira said softly. "I'll be alright and you need to rest too." Bumblebee reluctantly gave in and left the hangar.

Jazira settled to the floor and spent a few moments shifting uncomfortably as the bandages pulled awkwardly at her scales. Once she had found a comfortable position, she lay there and watched Ratchet finish repairing Optimus's torso.

"That was a fine welding job you did on him." Ratchet commented as he looked over his work. Optimus's frame was still quite dirty but otherwise good as new.

"Will he be alright?" Jazira asked. The medic looked up at her and the slightest flash of a smile passed over his facial plates as he nodded.

Relieved, Jazira rested her head on Optimus's chest and dozed off watching Ratchet fix the pile of mangled armor.

She slept through the noise of the repairs, embraced by the comfort of knowing that she had succeeded and everything would be alright.

_YEESSSSS! I'm so glad I've finally got this done for you guys! I hope you liked it. There's a few chapters to go. Love you guys! Hope you had a great Christmas or whatever else you may celebrate! XOXO_


	11. In My Life

_Hey guys! So, I know it's been a long ass time since I've posted anything….and there's a reason for that. I took a trip to Japan so see my fiancé who is currently stationed there. I was there for a month and didn't even touch my laptop. I've been back for a while but I got into the last book of the Eragon series and just couldn't put it down. But I was thinking of you guys and wanted to make sure I posted a really good chapter when I finally got back into it. I hope I achieved that goal. _

The sun had long since set when Ratchet finished securing the newly-repaired armor to Optimus's body. The only plates remaining were the chest plates. The medic cast his glance toward the resting dragon and Prime and decided it would be best to secure those when Jazira was finished using Optimus as a pillow.

Smiling to himself, Ratchet placed a tarp over the armor and approached the sleeping giants. He silently ran diagnostic scans on Optimus to discover that, aside from his energon levels being slightly lower than normal, he was completely fine and would be healthy and recharged enough to be brought out of stasis in the morning.

He walked to the empty corner of the hangar and settled himself to transform into his vehicle mode and get some recharge himself. Compared to the repairs he had just finished, the repairs needed after the fiasco in Egypt the year before looked minor. Brushing the thoughts of those events from his processor, Ratchet prepared his recharge process to allow him to be easily roused should anything go wrong in the night.

Then, just as Ratchet was about to begin his transformation sequence, Jazira shifted in her sleep. She slid her head from Optimus's chest plates to snuggle under his chin with a soft purr.

Ratchet stared at the dragon in fascination. She'd barely known Optimus for more than one day and already her protection instincts toward him were as strong as a mother's.

With another smile he realized his presence there was not needed. Jazira would be there should anything happen; she would call for him if he was needed. He turned to retire to the next room to recharge in his quarters. As he approached the door, the familiar whirring and humming of a system reboot reached his audio receptors.

Optimus was coming out of stasis on his own.

Ratchet rushed back to the berth as Optimus's blue optics lit the dark room. He groaned and shifted in an attempt to sit up. Ratchet placed a hand on his shoulder and forced him to stay down.

"Easy there, Optimus," the medic said. "You've been through a lot and it's too soon for you to be on the move."

Optimus looked confused for a time. He glanced around, unsure of how he got into Ratchet's med bay. Finally, he noticed the weight on his chest and looked down to see the sleeping serpent with its head resting just above his spark chamber. His optics widened in shock. He had no recollection of such a creature ever residing on base.

His memories of the past day eluded him.

"Ratchet…." He whispered harshly. Ratchet's hand lightly gripped Optimus's shoulder armor. As a medic, he had expected Optimus to have some memory problems. After taking such a beating and going through a complete system reboot, temporary confusion was only natural.

"It'll come to you." The medic said gently. "Just think about it for a moment; let your processors stabilize."

Optimus stared at the dragon. His gaze followed the horn on her nose, along her head, and down her neck. His attention caught on the bandages covering her shoulders and back. It was then that he remembered everything. The memories of the ambush, Jazira's brave stand, being patched up, and the journey back to the base all rushed back to him at once.

He raised one of his massive metal hands and placed it gently on her neck, embedding his fingers in the white fur of her mane. Ratchet removed his hand from Optimus's shoulder. It was clear he realized who she was.

"What happened to her?" Optimus asked, keeping his booming voice to a low rumble.

"She flew here from the other side of this planet with you on her back." Ratchet replied. "She's exhausted." Optimus pointed to the bandages.

"I hope I was not the cause of those wounds." He said. Ratchet walked quietly around Jazira to check on her. He cycled air through his vents slowly: a Cybertonian version of a sigh.

"Your armor was shredded in many places Optimus." He said gently. "The shards punctured her scales, and she pushed herself too hard in an attempt to return you here before it was too late. Her shoulder muscles are in bad shape, but she will recover with rest."

Guilt lanced through Optimus's spark.

Ratchet noticed his stricken expression and frowned. It was just like Optimus to feel that he was responsible for incidents that he had no control over.

"There is no sense in dwelling on this Optimus." He said sternly. "It was not your f-"

"No, Ratchet," Optimus interrupted. "The fault _was _mine." He moved his metal hand from Jazira's neck and covered his eyes, totally ashamed. "I refused to stop and recharge during my journey. If I had done otherwise, I would have been fit for battle. I put Jazira's health and safety at risk; it was a poor decision on my part as a leader."

Ratchet approached his leader and removed the hand covering his sky-blue optics. The medic regarded his old friend with sincerity and understanding.

"Jazira's choice to come to your aid was her own, Optimus." He reached down and detached the energon feed lines from the flame- covered arm. "But this is something you should discuss with her. But I'm certain that she will be satisfied with the fact that you are alright. Now, you need at least another eight hours of recharge before you can be up and moving around; so stay put." His last three words were firm.

Optimus nodded reluctantly and closed his optic covers in hopes that Ratchet would leave for his quarters. He was right. Optimus listened as Ratchet walked to his room, transformed, and powered down. After silence had enveloped the med bay, Optimus prepared himself to get up.

His movements were shaky and labor intensive. He felt as though his body had been lying dormant on Ratchet's berth for eons. With some difficulty, Optimus managed to gently remove Jazira's scaly head and neck from his chest and lay her softly on the concrete floor. She stirred slightly but did not appear otherwise disturbed.

Satisfied, Optimus swung his legs over the other side of the berth. He waited for his processor to stabilize his perception of depth and the ache in his chassis to dull.

He finally moved to stand. He couldn't remember the last time a simple movement such as standing had become so tedious. His joints creaked and hitched making motion anything but fluid.

Once he was convinced that his legs would carry his own weight, Optimus took one step forward, then another. Each was painful and sluggish, but he was determined to be in working condition for the Autobots in the morning.

On his next step his leg hitched painfully causing him to stumble. He tried to move his other leg to catch himself but it refused to move in time.

He prepared to hit the floor, followed by Ratchet rushing in to scold him for not doing as he was told.

Instead, something caught him. He looked down to see Jazira's neck stretched out, holding him up.

"You know, for a leader," Jazira said "You sure love getting into trouble."

"How were you roused from sleep?" Optimus asked her as she helped him stand and walk back to sit on the berth. He hoped it wasn't his fault.

"Optimus," she snorted, amused. "Your joints are about as quiet as a bull in a china shop. But don't worry, I'm not bothered. I don't usually sleep for more than a few consecutive hours before I wake up on my own."

The last statement was true, but she had said it to ease Optimus's obvious shame. His shoulders sagged and he looked at the floor.

Jazira sat and watched him for quite some time, ignoring the ache in her back and shoulders. Optimus could feel her eyes on him. The creature before him was magnificent and full of power and could easily kill with the amount of brute strength at her disposal. He remembered watching her defend him from Megatron. The sheer force that she displayed had shown him that she was capable of great destruction. And yet he felt no malice, no anger, and no threat of violence emanating from her. In fact, his interactions with her thus far had shown that she was very tender and compassionate.

_How could such a dangerous creature be so gentle? _Optimus thought to himself.

But he knew that it had all been for him. She had become a vicious creature bent on protecting him from the Decepticons. She had even faced Megatron himself to save his life and he had repaid her for everything by tearing her flesh and weakening her to the point of exhaustion.

"I'm sorry, Jazira." Optimus said. Jazira lowered her head to the floor and looked up at Optimus, catching his gaze. She pulled back up and he followed. The depth of her bright green eyes drew him in. It was a more beautiful sight than anything he'd ever laid his optics on in the many centuries he'd lived and the countless galaxies he'd visited.

Jazira blinked slowly.

"Why?" she asked gently. "There is nothing that you've done that needs forgiving."

"Jazira, you are in the condition you are in now because you came to my aid." The mech replied. "During my voyage to see you I neglected to recharge and regain my strength. Had I rested, I would have had the energy to fight. However, I chose poor judgment, and you paid the price."

"Optimus, I would have been needed whether you were rested or not." Jazira said. "You were outnumbered four to one. Now, while I know that you're more than capable of holding your own against Cons, Megatron wasn't about to let you leave alive. Sometimes shit happens that you can't control. This, unfortunately, has been one of those times." She took a step forward until she was mere feet from the Autobot leader and her tail swayed gently before coming to rest on the ground. "But Optimus…I should be thanking you."

Optimus's facial plates shifted in a puzzled frown. "You set me free Optimus." She said with a smile on her words. "I had been stuck alone for so long. Society wasn't ready to know of my existence, so the government left me on that mountain with everything I'd ever need…except a purpose and companionship." She huffed a sigh and a small puff of smoke floated from her nostrils.

"I was so lonely, Optimus. It was like I didn't even exist. But then I heard about you and the others and I finally felt that I might have a chance to be something and help people with my power. But before I got to help people, I got to help you. You've shown me where I belong: here, with you, where I have a purpose at last. So for that, I thank you."

Jazira stretched forward and draped her neck over Optimus's shoulder plating: the closest thing to a hug she could manage.

Optimus hesitated for a moment, slightly shocked, then embraced her in a hug of his own. Jazira closed her eyes and savored the warmth emanating from Optimus's spark chamber.

"I owe you my life, Jazira." Optimus murmured.

"You gave me a life, Optimus," she purred back "You owe me nothing."

When they broke the embrace, Jazira helped Optimus lay back down on the berth and urged him to sleep. He still seemed uncomfortable and unable to settle down.

Jazira's mothering instincts took over.

She laid her head on Optimus's bare chest and started to hum. The vibrations radiated from her throat and penetrated into his very core. For Optimus, it was just like a massage on his still aching circuitry. He sighed and noticed that for once in the centuries of war he'd fought, he felt safe.

After a few moments of humming, Jazira began to sing. Her voice echoed through Optimus's head like a gentle whisper. It was the most pure and beautiful voice he'd ever heard.

_There are places I remember_

_All my life, though some have changed_

_Some forever, not for better_

_Some have gone and some remain_

_All these places have their moments_

_With lovers and friends I still can recall_

_Some are dead and some are living_

_In my life, I've loved them all_

_But of all these friends and lovers_

_There is no one compares with you_

_And these memories lose their meaning_

_When I think of love as something new_

_Though I know I'll never lose affection_

_For people and things that went before_

_I know I'll often stop and think about them_

_In my life, I love you more_

_Though I know I'll never lose affection_

_For people and things that went before_

_I know I'll often stop and think about them_

_In my life, I love you more_

_In my life, I love you more_

When Jazira's voice ceased, she smiled. She had watched Optimus the whole time she sang. He had drifted into recharge and she was quite sure he would remain in his slumber until he was fully rested.

She closed her eyes and soon, she too was enveloped in the embrace of sleep.

_Well there you have it guys! I finally finished the chapter. But don't worry, there's one more before the story is over. PLEASE comment! I missed writing while I was overseas and I missed hearing from you guys even more. Much love 3_


	12. A New Beginning

_Hey guys! Wow, I am so, so, so, sorry. I promise there's a reason for the massive wait between my last post and this one. The main reason is the move. I have spent the last two months moving and it has been brutal. The house we moved out of was a big one with a massive attic, a huge basement, a two-bay attached garage, and a three-bay detached garage. And all of those spaces were full of junk. We moved into a house with no attic, a small basement, and a two-bay attached garage. And it's a smaller house in general. So getting rid of a ton of stuff was the big priority. _

_The other issue I had was actually writing a chapter worth reading. I had finished this chapter quite some time ago. But when I finished reading it, I realized how terrible it was. Seriously, it was bad. And you guys deserve better than that. So I had to rewrite it. It's shorter than what it was before, but it's better._

_After reading the last chapter, I realized that it was a tad mushier than I wanted. So I'd like to try and steer away from that for this last chapter. Hope you guys enjoy!_

The weeks that followed proved to be difficult for Jazira. Her healing process was hindered by an unnatural rainy period. The black clouds covered the sun for a continuous span of eight days which forced Jazira to stay indoors and remain unable to soak in the sun's rays to hasten her lengthy healing process.

The day after her arrival, she had been lying on the tarmac watching several members of NEST give Optimus a much-needed washing. His armor, though repaired, was still lacking its brilliant luster. Jazira lay transfixed as the dirt and grime was scrubbed and rinsed away in a river of bubbles. Once dried, Optimus transformed and inspected the work. All that was once corroded and filthy was now shining and reflective. Pleased, Optimus thanked the soldiers and assisted in cleaning up the mess.

Jazira watched Optimus and the soldiers walk to the hangar where they stored tools, equipment, and any other items used to keep the Autobots in working condition. Jazira smiled as she watched the massive Autobot interact with the beings beside him that were a fraction of his size as if they were his equals. He truly was a just leader.

She shut her eyes and focused on the sun's rays. Her wings tingled pleasantly as they absorbed the precious light and translated it to energy that worked to heal her. The broken ribs were already set and healed and the gash in her leg was little more than a pink line in her thigh where the scales hadn't grown back yet. But her back and shoulders were proving to be more of a challenge.

Then, without warning, the tingling vanished as a storm cloud as black as night covered the sky. Jazira looked up as she heard a sound that resembled wind rustling through leaves. Her eyes widened when a sheet of rain came roaring toward her, getting louder as it approached.

Optimus saw it too. He called to Jazira and ran back out to the tarmac. He knew that Jazira's bandages were not meant to get wet and she would need help to get back to shelter. The wall of water reached them as he made it to her. It pounded them both and made loud 'ping' noises as it bounced off Optimus's armor. Jazira had already gotten to her feet but welcomed Optimus's help as she hobbled through the storm. A flash of silver caught her peripheral vision and she looked up to see Sideswipe at her side as well.

With the help of the two bots, she hobbled back into Ratchet's med bay soaked to the bone. Optimus stayed with Jazira as Ratchet quickly started the task of changing the bandages on her shoulders. But to his frustration, the bandages were stuck cleanly to her wounds. At first, he tried peeling the bandages off slowly. But that only earned a squawk and a deep growl from the dragon.

Frustrated, Ratchet sighed in exasperation.

"Really now Jazira, he huffed. "A dragon, the fiercest creature on this planet, can't handle a simple change of bandages?" Jazira, who was lying on the floor next to Optimus sitting on the berth, turned her head and glared at the Autobot's medic. She didn't mean to be snappy, but she was still very tired and Ratchet condemning her wasn't doing anything to improve her mood.

"Ratchet, my pain tolerance is pretty high," Jazira snorted. "But what you're presently trying to accomplish is the equivalent of ripping my skin off."

Standing straight to stretch his cramped back strut, Ratchet regarded her with slightly more sympathy.

"What do you propose then?" he asked "Those bandages have to come off."

Jazira thought for a moment before replying. "Well, an infection is something I don't welcome and I don't want the healing process to take any longer than it has to." She shifted and splayed her wings neatly beside her. She twisted her neck to eye the wet bandages. "So, I would rip those suckers off and hope that I don't thrash too much."

Ratchet took a moment to consider what she had said. He had spent many hours searching the internet for information on the human body. It was plentiful to say the least. But while he now considered himself equipped to perform medical procedures on humans, this was something different. While Jazira did possess a human form, he was quite sure that human anatomy would do him no good with her current form. So, figuring that she knew more about her body than he did, he looked up at Optimus who had been listening intently the whole time.

"Optimus, give me a hand." He mumbled.

Optimus seemed to know what the medic wanted, for not a second later he was kneeling next to Jazira, holding her wings down to prevent her from further injuring herself.

Ratchet surveyed the bandages carefully before setting to work. He noticed that each strip of material was firmly attached to the one next to it. This would allow Ratchet to remove everything with one quick pull. And, with a count back from three, that was exactly what he did.

Every square inch of the bandage being removed brought white hot agony. Jazira reared back her head and howled as her legs involuntarily kicked out. Her massive claws left white scratches in the floor as they screeched over the concrete.

Optimus held onto her until the pain finally subsided to a dull ache. When he released her he sat back on the berth and allowed the dragon to rest her head on his lap. He stroked her neck as Ratchet cleaned the wound again and stopped the bleeding. It was then that Ratchet decided that applying bandages again would be a terrible idea.

The following days fared better. The clouds cleared and the bright Diego Garcia sun beat down on the island once more. Jazira spent her days lying on a patch of grass soaking in the rays. By then Optimus had returned to active duty.

At first, he had insisted on remaining with Jazira in the med bay until she had fully recuperated. It wasn't that he didn't trust Ratchet; in fact there was nobody Optimus would trust more than Ratchet. But she had saved his life. The least he could do was stay with her while she recovered.

The logic was difficult for anyone to deny, but once the rain stopped, Jazira advised Optimus that he should get back to his soldiers. Having him close by to keep her company had made the days significantly more bearable, but NEST needed him and the politics wouldn't wait. But, each day he would visit with her while the soldiers flocked to the mess hall for lunch, and then again when the day ended. He would sit next to her on the grass and they would talk about themselves, sharing their stories.

One afternoon, almost two weeks since Jazira's arrival, the dragon was sitting on her usual patch of grass enjoying her usual sun bath. It was Saturday, meaning that NEST, Autobots included, had the day to relax. On this particular day however, both Optimus and Bumblebee had taken time to give Jazira a bath.

In the two weeks that she had been at the base, she had refused to let anyone do anything for her besides Ratchet's daily checkups. She had even been catching her own food. It had been Bumblebee that approached her on an afternoon that she was struggling to catch fish for her lunch. She admitted that her insistence on being independent derived from the fact that she didn't want to be a bother to anyone.

After some reassurance, she was finally convinced that she was just as important as anyone else on the team.

Now, Jazira lay enjoying the pampering as rivers of murky water flowed away from her. The amount of sand and grime that had accumulated on her silver scales had taken the sparkle out of her entire form.

Bumblebee and Optimus took their time cleaning every one of Jazira's scales. It was an opportune time for Optimus to learn about her and what she might be capable of in battle. They took extra care to be delicate with her shoulders.

She no longer bore an open wound that carried risk of infection and her scales were beginning to grow back, but a few spots under her scales remained that had not completely healed and were still tender.

The Autobot leader took note of every sturdy muscle that flexed and ripped beneath his metal fingers. Her entire body was a total masterpiece. Her head was regal, but vicious looking with a long ivory horn protruding from her nose. Her sleek white mane of hair began in a thin line on the top of her head and continued down her back, increasing in thickness as it trailed down. Her chest was broad and sturdy, her legs and shoulders were corded with muscles, and her massive wings glittered in the sunlight.

As Optimus moved from cleaning the dirt from Jazira's shoulders to her forelegs, he was struck with curiosity.

"Jazira, I have seen you transform into several types of dragons, all of which have different strengths and abilities. But surely there must be a limit to the number of abilities you have." He reached down to examine her paw. "And perhaps some of your other forms possess…a less deadly appearance." He said with amusement as he examined her dagger-like claws.

Jazira chuckled deep in her throat.

"Sort of." She replied. "As I gain strength, train, and learn, I unlock more capabilities. For instance, as I am now, there are limits to my size. I cannot become a dragon that is smaller than a young child or bigger than what I am now. But that's just one of my flaws among many. With more training I will learn to achieve greater things with my power."

She raised her head toward the sky and closed her eyes, relishing the feeling of the water running between her scales and the two bots scrubbing the dirt from her nearly-healed body.

"But someday I will have only the limits of my imagination to hold me back." She turned her head to look toward Optimus with a mischievous glint in her eye. "Of course I _had_ planned to demonstrate my abilities to you when you came to meet me but that sure didn't work out did it?" she said.

Bumblebee perked up. He had wondered why his leader had insisted on going to see Jazira himself. Now he realized that it had been to take the time to learn about Jazira, and quite possibly….to spar with her.

Excitement bubbled in his chassis at the thought of Optimus and Jazira duking it out. Jazira: a ferocious engine of destruction, squaring off against Optimus: leader of the Autobots and the last of the mighty Primes was something he had to witness.

"Sir," he began, using clips from movies and old songs. "Perhaps…you do it…be good…help you learn…'bout 'er."

Optimus considered Bumblebee's suggestion as he scrubbed the last few feet of Jazira's long tail. There was still much to be learned about her and he had intended on sparring with her when he first met her. At the time he had thought it would have been with his holoform, but now that Jazira's ability was known to him, he knew he could test her with his true form. It would indeed be a fine opportunity. However….

"That would ultimately be up to Jazira, Bumblebee." He rumbled sternly. "She is not yet healed and only she knows whether she can-"

"Next week." Jazira cut in. The Autobot leader and his scout both turned to her slightly shocked.

"So soon?" Bee asked as he rinsed the last of the suds off her.

"Absolutely. I'll be healed fully within the next couple of days and I'm certain that you wouldn't be able to wait much longer than that anyway." She replied with a toothy grin and a wink at the scout. After a moment of thought, Optimus rose to his peds.

"If you are certain, then it is only proper that I request it of you formerly." He said to her. "Jazira, might I request you as my sparring partner next week?" he asked.

Jazira rose to her feet, her spotless scales caught the afternoon sun and reflected it everywhere, casting brilliant patterns of light that shimmered across every nearby surface.

She stood at her full height with her shoulders squared and her neck arched like a bow, facing Optimus eye-to-optic.

"You're on, Prime." She replied with a smile.

By the time the following Friday arrived, Jazira's injuries had fully healed, she was able to transform back into her human form again, and she had settled into the base and gotten to know her fellow soldiers quite nicely. And _everyone _knew of the event that was to come that evening.

Word spread like wildfire of how Optimus had challenged to newcomer to a friendly duel and everyone intended on being there to witness it.

As the sun began to set that night, the soldiers and Autobots all gathered on the tarmac.

The humans clustered together on one side, and the Autobots on the other. Jazira stood with the soldiers in her human form with Will.

"You're sure you're up for this?" he asked her. "Optimus isn't called Prime for nothing. He's the best fighter here and then some, and just because you two have agreed to just fight hand to hand doesn't mean that it gives you the advantage."

Jazira turned to Will with a look of utter disbelief on her face.

"You've got money on him don't you?" She said. Will clapped her on the back.

"Yes, yes I do. And it doesn't look like he's going to be leaving me broke for the weekend either." He said with a smirk as they looked up to see Optimus step out of the group of Autobots and onto the dueling space in all his glory. His metal soldiers banged on their armor and shouted phrases in Cybertonian which Jazira could only guess were words of encouragement.

Jazira turned back to Will with a look of friendly accusation.

"You're such a pal." She said in a tone of flat sarcasm. He patted her shoulder with a smile as she turned and started to make her way through the sea of soldiers. They all began yelling and hooting and whistling as they saw her approach. It was a cheer that could rival that of any NFL game.

Jazira's attention never left Optimus. Even as some of the soldiers clapped her on the back or offered her high fives, her eyes never left Optimus's. Finally, she broke through the soldiers and stepped onto the dueling field. And everyone went silent.

All eyes watched as Jazira focused her energy into her transformation. She had thought long and hard about what type of dragon she would use in this battle, and they were all in for a treat.

She closed her eyes and her body began to change. Her neck elongated, a tail appeared, and scales erupted from her skin. But this dragon was different. Instead of walking on four legs, this dragon walked on two, while leaving the arms free to use however she liked. Her wing span stretched wider than she was tall, giving the appearance that she was larger than she truly was. She stood as tall as Optimus at her full height. Her entire body was covered in thick black scales, her underside was blood red, and three positively deadly-looking horns protruded from her head.

After taking a moment to look her up and down, Optimus nodded to her. She returned the respectful gesture. Then, as if it was rehearsed, they began to circle each other and their spectators began to cheer again.

Jazira remained crouched close to the ground as she circled, like a serpent ready to strike. Optimus took the moment of preparation before the battle to speak.

"You will make a fine opponent for any Decepticon, Jazira." He said as his battle mask slid into place. "Your current form will give them all a reason to shudder."

Jazira's green eyes glowed and her jagged teeth flashed as she smiled.

"True as that may be Optimus," she rumbled "That's no reason for me to not practice intimidation tactics for those that are foolish enough not to."

And with that she opened her mouth and released a mighty roar that sent shockwaves across the pavement.

Then, without hesitation, they both charged.

_And the rest…is to your imagination._

_Please don't hate me guys! Haha. I just wanted to thank everyone that read this story and showed me so much support through this long process. It has truly taken this story to make me realize how busy I really am and how much I really need to start relaxing more. But for now, I will leave you with the reassurance that I don't plan on making this the only story I post here. I intend to keep writing for you and continue Jazira's journey with the Autobots. I may even send her into the world of Transformers Prime. Speaking of which, if any of you have not watched that show, I really encourage you to take a look into it. It is a masterpiece and is engaging for all ages. So, with that being said, I love you guys, thank you again for all you've done for me, and I hope to read comments from you all. Peace out and much love. –Dragongyrl24_


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